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Would a parks and rec special district better serve Forest Grove and nearby cities? (guest opinion)

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The greater Forest Grove area is one of the few of its size that does not have a community recreation center. While the city does have an aquatic center with a community pool, it lacks other facilities for expanded programming such as group exercise, weight, cardio and multipurpose rooms.
(Michal Thompson/The Argus)

I am a member of a local coalition of citizens exploring the idea of creating a new Parks and Recreation Special District to serve the communities of Forest Grove, Cornelius, Gaston, Banks and possibly North Plains.

We have identified a critical shortcoming when it comes to providing our community of over 35,000 residents with a broad range of recreation services and facilities. Cornelius in particular calls itself "Oregon's Family Town" yet it has a minimal Parks and Recreation Department.

Forest Grove, the largest of the five communities, has an extremely limited Parks and Rec department that is constantly faced with budget reductions and cuts in service, yet must serve an ever-growing population. Gaston and Banks do not have an existing parks department and lack the financial ability to sustain one.

Just to the east, Hillsboro and Beaverton both possess thriving Parks and Recreation entities that easily meet the needs of their communities. As an employee of both Hillsboro Parks & Recreation and Tualatin Hills Parks & Recreation District, I have seen and been involved in the vast range of recreation and fitness programs offered to the public both youth and adult.

For most patrons there, using some form of recreation service is a routine and valuable part of their life. Unfortunately, when residents from outside those districts choose to participate in any recreation program, they are often met with barriers to participate such as out-of-district assessment fees, program exclusions, and extra transportation costs.

What do you think?

Seaside (Sunset Empire), Newberg and Dundee (Chehalem) and Milwaukie and Happy Valley (North Clackamas) are among Oregon communities that have formed park and recreation districts.

Additionally, the greater Forest Grove area is one of the few of its size that does not have a community recreation center. While the city does have a community pool, it is routinely faced with intermittent closures due to budget limitations and does not have other facilities for expanded programming such as group exercise, weight room, cardio room and multipurpose room.

Forest Grove also does not have any full-time recreation programmers or offer much in the way of youth recreation programming, which is surprising considering the fact that Forest Grove is home to many families.

Our concern is that our communities are vastly underserved when it comes to Parks & Recreation-related opportunities. We would like to get a sense of community opinion on our idea of forming a new special district and if area residents would support such an endeavor.

Part of that endeavor may mean consolidating all of the participating cities' parks departments into one entity with overall jurisdiction. Pooling of resources makes the most sense and might save local governments money while increasing programming and recreation opportunities for everyone.

A property tax to partially support this new entity might be something to consider with the idea that any such tax would be kept as low as possible and spending would be highly transparent to the public. THPRD in Beaverton is a great example of a highly successful special taxing district with extremely high satisfaction among patrons and a reputation for government transparency.

A thriving parks organization is also a great source for local jobs. Such organizations create many seasonal employment opportunities for our young adults as well as full-time positions managing a wide variety of services.

Forming our own local parks district also would give citizens greater control over local parks, green spaces and natural areas while limiting the growing influence of Metro, the regional government. Our public park lands and trails should be primarily managed by local people and a park district would strengthen our ability to do that. A board of directors elected from citizens of each participating city would oversee the organization and its programs. That’s not to say that this new entity would not and should not occasionally benefit from select partnerships with Metro and other governments in the region.

The bottom line is that having greater access to parks and recreation services benefits everyone, not just a select segment of society. Our community is very much a family oriented place. Our governments should be using our tax dollars to support and foster a safe and healthy community.

I believe the best tool a local government can use to promote family-oriented growth is through parks and recreation services. Forming a special park district to replace the struggling or virtually nonexistent ones would be a more efficient and effective way to accomplish these objectives. What do you think?

Joel Gordon grew up in Cornelius and has worked in the parks and recreation field for over 11 years. He has a bachelors degree in public administration and has served in the Oregon Army National Guard.